Diabetes is a major health concern, because it can significantly impede the lifestyle of persons afflicted with this disease. Typically, treatment of the more severe form of the condition, Type I, or insulin-dependent diabetes, requires insulin to control glucose in the blood to prevent hyperglycemia that, if left uncorrected, can lead to ketosis. Hyperglycemia in diabetics also has been correlated with several long-term effects of diabetes, such as heart disease, blindness, hypertension, and kidney failure. Additionally, improper administration of insulin therapy can result in hypoglycemic episodes, that can cause coma and death.
Due to the debilitating effects resulting from abnormal blood glucose levels, insulin infusion pumps have been developed. These insulin delivery devices require that a reservoir of insulin be available to be delivered to the patient via a conduit that is a part of an infusion set. A variety of infusion sets employ conduits that permit access to body target sites in order to perform diagnostic, therapeutic, and surgical procedures, as well as to deliver insulin. For example, flexible cannulas inserted into a skin target site by rigid needles are conventionally employed for this purpose. There are several drawbacks in the use of infusion sets including the pain, discomfort, and anxiety associated with the deployment of the conduit under the patient's skin. It is therefore desirable to have an infusion set that is easy for the patient to use, that quickly and reliably inserts a fluid-carrying conduit to the appropriate depth under the skin, and that minimizes the anxiety associated with inserting the conduit.